London for walkers: the essentials
Market days and free museums, where the toilets and water are, and what is worth your time.
12 audio tours · 185 toilets · 152 drinking fountains
Cover: Westminster and the Thames from above. Photo: Gianluca Pugliese / Pexels
London, day by day
- Monday
- Closed: Borough Market. Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, 11:00.
- Tuesday
- Closed: Nothing major. Borough Market, 10:00 to 17:00.
- Wednesday
- Closed: Nothing major. Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, 11:00.
- Thursday
- Closed: Nothing major. Old Spitalfields Market opens early, at 08:00.
- Friday
- Closed: Nothing major. Late museums: V&A to 22:00, National Gallery and Tate Modern to 21:00, British Museum to 20:30.
- Saturday
- Closed: Nothing, but every market is packed. Portobello Road, the only day all its sections trade. Broadway Market, 09:00 to 17:00.
- Sunday
- Closed: Westminster Abbey and St Paul's to sightseers (services only). Big shops open just six hours, often 12:00 to 18:00. Columbia Road flower market, 08:00 to about 15:00.
Book these ahead
| How far ahead | Good to know | |
|---|---|---|
| Sky Garden | 21 days ahead | Free. A whole week of slots goes live each Monday morning, three weeks ahead. Limited walk-ins. |
| Ceremony of the Keys | 60 days ahead | Booking opens at 13:00 on the first working day of the month before. The cheap tickets go in minutes. |
| Houses of Parliament tour | 14 days ahead | £40 in advance, £43 on the day. Saturdays all year, plus weekdays in recess. |
| Tower of London | 1 days ahead | £37 adult. Quieter after midday. No suitcases allowed. |
| St Paul's Cathedral | 1 days ahead | £27 adult, dome climb included. Closed to sightseers on Sunday. |
| West End shows | 0 days ahead | TodayTix Rush releases £20 to £30 seats at 10:00 for that night. The TKTS booth in Leicester Square sells same-day seats. |
If the weather turns
Too hot
- Hampstead Heath bathing ponds: men's, ladies' and mixed. A swim is £5
- The Serpentine Lido in Hyde Park, open for swimming from June to mid-September
- The Elizabeth, Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines have air-cooled trains. The Central, Victoria and Bakerloo are the hottest
Raining
- British Museum, free
- Natural History Museum and the V&A, both free, side by side in South Kensington
- National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, free, open to 21:00 on Fridays
London, area by area
Seven areas, each its own small city. Tap one on the map.
Westminster
Parliament, the Abbey and the government streets of Whitehall. Good for: The guard change at Horse Guards Parade, 11:00, with close views. Careful: The shell game and pickpockets on Westminster Bridge.
Soho and Covent Garden
Theatres, Chinatown and narrow Soho streets. Good for: Same-day theatre seats and cheap Chinatown food. Careful: Chain steakhouses and buffets around Leicester Square.
South Bank
A riverside walk past the London Eye, the National Theatre and Tate Modern. Good for: Tate Modern, free and open to 21:00 on Friday and Saturday. Careful: Phone snatchers in the crowds near the London Eye.
The City
Medieval lanes under glass towers, the old Square Mile. Good for: Sky Garden, St Paul's and Postman's Park. Careful: St Paul's is closed to sightseers on Sunday.
Shoreditch
Street art, Brick Lane and the Sunday markets. Good for: Sunday, for Columbia Road and the Sunday Upmarket. Careful: Curry-house touts on Brick Lane. If someone has to pull you in, walk on.
Notting Hill
Pastel terraces and Portobello Road. Good for: Saturday, when every section of the market trades. Careful: Saturday crowds. On Sunday the street market is mostly shut.
Greenwich
Maritime history and a hilltop royal park. Good for: The view from the General Wolfe statue, one of London's protected views. Careful: A steep climb from the river to the top of the park.
Worth it, and what to skip
In London the best sights are often free, and the famous paid ones are not always the good ones.
Worth it
- British Museum: Free, and open to 20:30 on Fridays.
- Sky Garden: Free views from the top of the Walkie Talkie, if you book three weeks ahead.
- Tower of London: The Yeoman Warder tours are included in the £37 ticket.
- St Paul's Cathedral: Huge and calm inside, and the dome climb gives a great view.
- Horse Guards Parade: A guard change at 11:00 you can see up close, without the palace crush.
Skip it
- Madame Tussauds: From £27 online and £39 at the door. Forum regulars call it a disappointment.
- M&M's World, Leicester Square: Four floors of sweets you can buy in any supermarket.
- Changing of the Guard at the palace gates: Only the front rows see anything, and people arrive hours early.
- The View from the Shard: £28 to £32. The Sky Garden is free, or buy a drink in a Shard bar.
Views and sunset spots
Three free places to watch the sun go down over the city.
- Waterloo Bridge
- The west side faces the sun over Westminster. The east side looks to St Paul's and the City. Maps
Green London
London's big parks are free, open every day and close to the sights.
Eat well for less
Eat well for less. Skip the chain steakhouses and buffets around Leicester Square. Chinatown is two minutes away.
- Sunday roast in a local pub
- £14 to £18 at neighbourhood pubs, £17 to £24 at most mid-range ones.
- Supermarket meal deal
- £4.25 at Tesco, £3.85 with a Clubcard. A main, a snack and a drink.
Example prices, not checked yet.
Late night
The Night Tube runs on Friday and Saturday nights on the Central, Jubilee, Northern, Piccadilly, Victoria and Windrush lines, at off-peak fares. Night buses cover the rest of the week. Many pubs still close at 23:00 and call last orders about 20 minutes before, though central bars often stay open later. Beigel Bake on Brick Lane serves all night.
Same city, two prices
Example prices, not checked yet.
Only in London
- Free national museums
- The British Museum, National Gallery, Tate Modern and V&A charge nothing for their collections.
- The Uber Boat
- River commuter boats take contactless. A Central zone single is £9.90.
- Postman's Park
- 54 plaques in a quiet City garden remember 62 ordinary people who died saving others.
- Ceremony of the Keys
- The Tower's gates are locked every night in a ritual over 700 years old.
Be careful of
London is safe for most visitors. Petty theft is the main risk.
- Pickpockets and phone snatchers
- Oxford Street, Leicester Square and the South Bank by the London Eye. Thieves on bikes grab phones at the kerb.
- The shell game
- The three cups game on Westminster Bridge is a scam. The crowd around it includes pickpockets.
- Escalators
- Stand on the right. The left is for people walking.
- Traffic
- Cars come from the right. Look right before you step off the kerb, and watch for cyclists.
Toilets and water near you
185 toilets (100 free, 72 accessible) and 152 drinking fountains around the tour routes.
Toilets at big Network Rail stations like King's Cross, Victoria and Waterloo are free. Some council toilets, like those opposite Westminster Abbey, cost 50p. Free museums have free toilets. Tap water is safe, and the Refill app shows cafés that fill bottles for free.
Toilets and water: © OpenStreetMap contributors, 2026-10-25.
Toilets and water: © OpenStreetMap contributors, 2026-10-25. Tap a point for directions, or a number to zoom in.
Walk or take the Tube?
In the centre, short hops are often quicker on foot. Leicester Square and Covent Garden stations are 260 metres apart, the shortest gap on the network.
| Between | Walk | Tube | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Between Covent Garden and Leicester Square | 4 min | 10 min | Walk |
| Between Trafalgar Square and Big Ben | 12 min | 12 min | Walk |
| Between Westminster and Tower Bridge | 55 min | 20 min | Ride |
| Between the British Museum and the Natural History Museum | 60 min | 25 min | Ride |
Tap the same contactless card or phone in and out. Pay as you go stops charging at £8.90 a day in zones 1 and 2, and at £44.70 from Monday to Sunday. A bus is £1.75, rising to £1.85 on 1 November 2026. An Oyster card adds a card fee you do not get back.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Stand on the right on escalators
- Let people off the train before you get on, and mind the gap
- Queue and wait your turn, at bus stops too
Don't
- Stand on the left of an escalator
- Block the doors of a Tube carriage. Move down inside
- Add a tip on top of a 12.5% service charge
Your week in London
| Coffee | £4 |
| Tube (daily cap zones 1-2) | £8.90 |
| Lunch | £12 |
| Dinner | £30 |
| Paid sight (e.g. Tower of London) | £37 |
Per person, without flights or accommodation. The budget column uses free museums instead of paid sights. Example prices, not checked yet.
Quick answers
- Are museums really free?
- Yes. National museums like the British Museum, National Gallery, Tate Modern and V&A are free. Special exhibitions cost extra.
- Can I use contactless on the Tube?
- Yes. Tap in and out with the same card or phone, and you never pay more than £8.90 a day in zones 1 and 2.
- Is tap water safe?
- Yes. London tap water meets UK drinking water standards. Over 100 public fountains let you refill for free.
- Is it safe at night?
- Mostly, yes. Serious crime against visitors is rare. Keep your phone away from the kerb and use licensed taxis, not touts.
- Do I tip?
- Many restaurants add a 12.5% service charge. It is optional, and nothing more is expected. Pubs need no tip.
- Where do I leave luggage on the last day?
- Left-luggage desks at big stations charge from £10 per item for 3 hours. Apps like Stasher and Bounce use local shops for less.
Our audio tours in London
Each tour is the walk in order, with the stories told at every stop. Compare our 12 tours.
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